


As Tightly As You Can

by Frenchibi



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Cuddling & Snuggling, Domestic, Domestic Fluff, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Insomnia, Kissing, M/M, Multi, Pillow & Blanket Forts, Support, This is the softest thing, lots of love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-16
Updated: 2017-04-16
Packaged: 2018-10-19 10:36:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10638117
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Frenchibi/pseuds/Frenchibi
Summary: “Let’s put the mattresses on the living room floor,” he says. “Push the couch to the wall, and the table into the kitchen. Then we’ll all fit together.”Tetsu’s grin spreads. “You know what’d make this better?Pillow fort.”





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Ailarii](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ailarii/gifts).



> This is my IwaOi Exchange fic for [@ailarii](http://ailarii.tumblr.com/) on tumblr! You let me write IwaOiBoKuro and I am Eternally Grateful (and also Eternally Salty that this is literally the first work in their tag? How. HOW.)  
> In any case, I hope you like this and I hope my ridiculous amounts of fluff are not too much :'D

It’s been, in all honesty, a pretty terrible day.

As a rule, Hajime doesn’t forget projects. He’s generally well-prepared for most of his courses - spending most of his time in the presence of the ever-ambitious, never-resting Oikawa Tooru does spur a sense of drive, reluctant or otherwise, to not be left behind - and he takes care to hand in his assignments on time. But lately, he’s been so swamped somehow (it’s what everyone says; “it’s been crazy lately,” and it really has, not just as an excuse for laziness) and apparently he’d lost sight of the looming deadline for a rather large, rather important essay for his biology course.

Well. He thanks the gods for Tooru’s scheduling plan (to be perfectly honest, it’s probably saved more than one poor soul from a complete breakdown, ever since he made it available to some of his classmates and they’d spread the word), which comes with an app (thanks to Makki) that sends you a reminder twenty-four hours before each deadline.

Except twenty-four hours are barely enough for all the research Hajime needs, and most certainly not enough for sleeping either.

And so, he’s pulled an all-nighter to get it done.

It would have been fine, maybe - he’s surrounded by understanding and support, both subtle and direct. Tooru helped him make the plan, talked through his ideas with him and made sure he got a good structure down (and that he found the right research materials. He knows his way around the library better than the librarians at this point). Tetsu cooked dinner, and then made sure to get Bo out of the apartment for the better part of the evening to give Hajime some quiet. It was a greatly appreciated gesture - but when they came back, it quickly became evident that it wouldn’t have been necessary. Hajime distinctly feels that for all of his excess energy, they haven’t been giving Bo enough credit at all. He’s the one who dropped in on Hajime every hour or so to make sure he was doing okay, to bring him tea and blankets and to keep him company in the early hours of the morning, when things seemed to get a little too quiet. Just having him in the room already helped so much-

So the essay, well. That should be fine. It’s the rest of the day that sort of wrecked him. One of his courses was spontaneously shifted without proper notification, so he spent at least half of that lesson trying to locate the new lecture hall - and once he’d found out where to go, he also realized he’d signed up for a supplementary lesson scheduled for his usual lunch break, and on top of all that, he’d left his lunch at home. Because it couldn’t just be one thing, oh no, when Hajime has bad days it’s _go big or go home_.

By the time he finally, finally unlocks the door to their apartment, he feels ready to collapse and sleep for a week - but he’s also hungry and restless, his head swimming with random bits of research, information from the day’s lectures, and snippets of the previous day’s conversations.

“I’m home,” he says, letting the door fall closed behind him. He can’t quite manage to sound a lot better than he feels, and Bo pokes his head around the corner from the kitchen to peer at him.

“Hajime! You sound… tired?”

Hajime manages something that’s almost a half-smile.

“...exhausted,” he says. “Heya, Bo.”

A muffled voice reaches them from the living room, “Oh, is Iwa back?”

Hajime exhales, heavier than usual, and makes his way inside to greet the others.

He finds them wrapped up in a blanket on the couch - the one with the cat print, the one Tooru _knows_ is softer than his alien one (even though he vehemently denies it). Tetsu’s leaning up against the armrest on one end, with Tooru fit snugly in between his legs, back resting against his chest. Tetsu’s got his hand in Tooru’s hair, and Tooru looks barely awake, dozing with a book open in his lap.

He opens his eyes when Hajime walks in, and a lazy sort of smile spreads across his face.

“Iwa-chan! Congrats on finishing your essay - and welcome home!”

Tetsu nods, adding his own “welcome back,” and Hajime rubs a hand over his face in an attempt to get rid of the crushing exhaustion he feels.

“Hi. You look comfy there.”

Tooru grins, rolling his shoulders back a bit. “Tetsu-chan makes a good pillow.”

“...I bet,” Hajime says, amusement finding its way through the dreary weight that’s got his eyelids feeling heavy.

“Just ask Bo,” Tetsu says - and Hajime feels some of the exhaustion falling away and making way for tension.

Right. There’s something he still has to do.

 

~

 

 _“...you can go to bed, you know. You don’t have to torture yourself on my account.”_  
  
_Bo looks over mid-yawn, but his eyebrows draw together and he snaps his mouth shut._

_“I’m staying,” he says._

_“...you really don’t have to-”_

_“I want to.” It sounds almost defiant._

_Hajime feels his expression soften, and sees Bo’s shoulders unclench. “...okay. I like having you here. I’m just… worried you’re not sleeping enough.”_

_It’s meant to reassure him. Be clear._

_He’s not expecting Bo to still, and to catch his lower lip between his teeth._

_Hajime puts down his pen, his own brow furrowing in concern. “Have you… been having trouble again?”_

_Bo looks down, not meeting his eye._

_Shit._

_“...I thought the new setup was helping you…?”_

_Bo kneads his fingers together in his lap, and Hajime thinks he sees tears building in his eyes._

_Always, always blaming himself._

_Hajime slides off his chair onto the floor and moves over so he can sit between Bo’s legs, taking his hands and rubbing circles into his palms with his thumbs._

_“Bo. Hey.”_

_Bo sniffs, shakes his head - teeth draw blood._

_“Kou,” he whispers, and Bo tenses even more. “Kou, love. Listen.”_

_Hajime moves in closer, pushes into Bo’s space so he can catch his eye even with the way he’s hanging his head. There’s tears building there, large and shaky._

_“...it’s okay. Have you been able to sleep at all, just with Tetsu? Remember, we… we split because all of us in one bed was too overwhelming?”_

_Bo manages a small nod, but something still feels off. Heavy._

_“...is it helping?” Hajime asks quietly, careful to keep his tone soft._

_At first, Bo doesn’t move at all. But then, slowly, he shakes his head, just once._

_Hajime exhales._

_“Okay. Can… can you tell me why?”_

_Bo’s eyes dart up to meet Hajime’s, just for a tiny second - but that second is enough to show a sharp stab of pain and fear that makes Hajime tense up completely. It’s worse than he’d thought._

_“...no one’s mad at you, love,” he says, tightening his grip on Bo’s wrists. “We want to help you. So… tell me what’s wrong?”_

_Bo’s face is starting to contort with his efforts not to cry - he lets out a shuddering breath before he says, “...your essay-”_

_“I’m almost done,” Hajime tells him - and it’s true. And the next part is, too. “This is more important.”_

_He says it with sincerity and conviction, and it seems the certainty he’s trying to convey is carrying over, because Bo raises his head, just so. A tear slips out of his eye, trailing over his cheek, and Hajime reaches up to brush it aside._

_Bo stares - and then, as if Hajime’s touch had triggered some hidden switch, the tears don’t stop falling._

_Hajime pushes himself up immediately and catches him in his arms, pulling him close so he can bury his head in Hajime’s shoulder._

_“It’s okay,” he says. “It’s okay.”_

_Bo’s breathing is all wrong, and Hajime soothes a hand over his back to help him regain his calm, deliberately slowing his own breaths for Bo to match. It’s not new - and while Hajime hates that notion, he’s also grateful that he knows what to do._

_Bo seems to, too - he manages to choke out a few words, quietly at first, but then loud enough for Hajime to understand._

_“...I n-needed… n-needed you,” he says, and Hajime tenses. “A-and T-Tooru. F-felt wrong-”_

_He stops, letting another wave of tears wash over him, filled with the weight of the admission. Hajime tightens his grip, running a hand up into Bo’s hair._

_“Oh,” he says quietly, and the meaning behind his words settles in. “...do you… what do you want to do?”_

_Bo hiccups a little, and Hajime lets out a soft chuckle. It breaks some of the tension, and Bo slumps against him. Finally letting it go._

_“...be with a-all of you,” he says, and Hajime feels his heart swell. After all - that’s what he wants, too._

_They’d agreed on the new sleeping arrangement after Tooru had found Bo out on the balcony in the middle of the night, feet frozen and shoulders shaking, and he’d confessed to the insomnia that’s been tearing him apart, keeping him awake, never letting him rest. The bed was too small, too cramped, too many bodies piled together - so they’d gone back (back, Hajime thinks, is not the way he wants to see it, because of how long it took to get where they are now, together, finally) to using two bedrooms instead of one. There’d been a plan to rotate, but Tooru gets nightmares and Hajime is quickest to soothe them, and Bo latched onto Tetsu and that seemed to help-_

_“...okay,” Hajime says, shaking the thoughts away. “We’ll… we’ll make that work. It’s okay.”_

_He almost wishes he’d glanced away, because the hope that shoots into Bo’s eyes is so sharp that it’s almost painful._

_Instead, Hajime gives him a smile, one he means from the bottom of his heart._

_“We’ll be fine,” he tells him. “Don’t worry.”_

 

~

 

Of course Bo hasn’t mentioned this yet - but judging by the way he takes hold of the edge of Hajime’s sweater now, tugging ever so slightly, he surely hasn’t forgotten.

Bo still struggles sometimes, but it’s okay. They’ve promised each other patience. It took long enough for Bo to start getting comfortable, to stop doubting himself and his worth - Tooru helped most, here, with experience Hajime wishes he didn’t have - but they’re getting there.

Hajime feels the pressure of his exhaustion heavy on his shoulders, but this takes priority.

“Do you guys have a minute? There’s… something we should talk about.”

Tooru’s eyes widen, just enough for Hajime to read his apprehension, and he gathers the same tentative worry from the way Tetsu sits up a little straighter.

Hajime slips his hand into Bo’s, startling him slightly - but then he squeezes his fingers and pulls him up so they’re side by side, giving him a reassuring smile.

Tetsu is the first to catch on, shifting his focus.

“...Bo?” he asks quietly. Tooru looks over too, leaning forward in his seat.

“Kou-chan?”

Bo’s tugging his lip into his mouth again, still red from where his teeth broke the skin - but this time, he releases it on his own.

He shoots Hajime a quick glance, returning the pressure, and turns back to face the others.

“I…haven’t been sleeping well.”

It’s so small, barely there, but Hajime swears he sees Tetsu’s jaw set, eyebrows drawing together in understanding. Hajime knows Tetsu is a heavy sleeper - he might blame himself for not noticing, for not paying better attention-

“I think… maybe being in two rooms is a bad idea,” Bo continues. Hajime nods, knowing he’s waiting for some form of confirmation here, and Tooru actually gasps.

He pushes himself up, blanket falling to the floor, and keeps his wide eyes trained on Bo.

“...are you- do you want to-”

Bo looks startled for a moment, jolted out of his train of thought by the sudden movement - but then he breaks into a smile, and Hajime feels it like a weight dropping from his chest.

“Maybe- maybe we can get a bigger bed…?”

Tooru’s clutching his own hands against his chest, the widest, happiest grin tearing across his face - and Tetsu sighs, tension visibly seeping away from him, too. His lips easily settle into a smile as well, and he gets to his feet.

“We’ll go tomorrow,” he says, and Bo throws him a look like he’d personally hung the moon.

“Tomorrow?”

“Agreed,” Hajime says, over Tooru’s delighted little squeak.

The collective relief has lifted the apprehension away - and with it, Hajime’s exhaustion is slipping back in.

It must show on his face, because Tooru is suddenly right up in his personal space, arms snaking around his waist.

“Iwa-chan, did you sleep at all last night? You were gone before I woke up, but I didn’t feel you come to bed…?”

Hajime lets out a little sigh, allowing himself to lean into him, just so.

“Nah. Got done just in time for breakfast. Bo helped.”

Bo grins, stepping up and wrapping his arms around both of them. “I just brought tea. Wasn’t a big deal.”

Tetsu gives him a look that almost passes for stern and follows suit, squeezing them all together. “Helped,” he says firmly. “And now we’re gonna let Iwa get the rest he deserves.”

Tooru hums, tucking his head under Hajime’s chin. “I could sleep,” he allows, though he’s fooling no one.

“Mmh.” Hajime hesitates for a second, thinking - and then he pulls back. It’s a little more abrupt than he means to, and three pairs of eyes look up at him in surprise.

“Let’s put the mattresses on the living room floor,” he says. “Push the couch to the wall, and the table into the kitchen. Then we’ll all fit together.”

Tetsu’s grin spreads. “You know what’d make this better? _Pillow fort_.”

Bo’s eyes go wide - and then he’s tugging at Tooru’s arm.

“Oh my god, To, _the stars_!”

Tooru blinks - and then he gets it, and he lets out another excited sound, making both Hajime and Tetsu laugh. Hajime knows, too - Tooru keeps a box of old stuff from Miyagi under their bed, including a large selection of glow-in-the-dark stars.

“Alright,” Tetsu says, “Iwa, help me move the couch?”

Hajime nods, giving Tooru one last squeeze before letting him go.

“Let’s do this. But first, I’m gonna need a little bit of food.”

 

~

 

The mattresses don’t quite fit. One’s corner is bent a little awkwardly against the wall, and one is smushed against the leg of the couch - but honestly, it doesn’t matter one bit.

Tetsu has fort-building skills that know no rival, and he’s balanced their chairs, in Hajime’s opinion, in rather precarious positions to get the effect he wanted, draping their lighter blankets over the top and stuffing the warmer ones underneath, along with a multitude of pillows. Everything’s mixed up, Oikawa’s alien plushies in every corner, surrounded by Tetsu’s throw pillows and dozens of tiny glowing stars - and when the other three have crawled inside, curling up into one another, a place has never felt as much like _home_.

Hajime can’t help but feel like this is how it should be, everything mixed together, all of them piled on top of each other-

“Iwa-chan,” Tooru whines, “why are you just _standing_ there?”

“Get in here,” Tetsu adds, and Hajime sees Bo nod in agreement. He’s wedged in between the two of them, back pressed into Tetsu’s chest and Tooru’s head resting on his arm, and he looks positively electric with excitement. The sight is enough to make Hajime’s heart surge in his chest.

“Just a sec,” he says. “I forgot something.”

He ducks back into the bedroom - his and Tooru’s, but soon to be just a study again - and grabs the nearest phone, unplugging it from the charger and heading back out just as quickly.

“Iwa-chaaan,” Tooru calls, followed by snickering from Bo and Tetsu. “Hurry up!”

Hajime lets out a little laugh. “Already here, don’t worry.”

He flicks the light switch off, sidesteps one of the chairs and drops to his knees in front of the entrance. It looks even cozier now, lit only by the feeble glow of Tooru’s stars. They’re enough, though, to show three faces beaming up at him.

He holds up the phone. “...in case you wanna document this,” he says, eyes lingering on Tooru. “I know you do. Nerd.”

Tooru is too busy immediately making grabby hands at the phone to even really notice the jab, and Bo and Tetsu laugh softly.

Hajime dodges Tooru’s assault and fits himself in the middle, squeezing between Bo and Tooru, who makes one last effort to seize the phone before abandoning the issue and dropping his arm over Hajime’s stomach. He pulls himself close, burying his face in his neck.

The position takes some adjusting, each of them wiggling around to get comfortable (“Bo, your hair _tickles_ ” - “Sorry, Tets- ow, careful-” - “Tooru, hold _still_ -”) but it works. And once it does - things quiet down.

“...gonna take that picture?” Tetsu mumbles somewhere to his right. Hajime nods, even though he can’t see him - and then he raises the phone up above them.

“...might be too dark.”

“...mmh, you turned off the light.”

“Should I go-”

“Nooo,” Tooru mumbles into his shirt, tightening his grip. “I just got comfy!”

“...so you’re giving up the selfie for comfort?”

Tooru huffs. “Not giving up. Take it tomorrow.”

“This might’ve collapsed on top of us though,” Tetsu points out.

Bo lets out a laugh that Hajime feels under his arm. It’s warm.

“That’s not very reassuring,” he says dryly.

“Shut up. No refunds.”

“...can’t use the flash either,” Tooru says. “We’ll look awful.”

“...try without? We’ve got the stars,” Bo points out.

“Doubt that’ll work,” Hajime says, but opens the camera app anyway.

It… sort of works. Their faces are way too dark, but they’re there.

“...take it,” Tooru says, blinking up at it. “I like it.”

Both Bo and Tetsu shift to look at him, more than a little incredulous.

“What.”

“It’s clearly bad!”

Tooru gives them a little shrug. “...it’s us, and that’s what matters.”

And damn, if that doesn’t hit home. Hajime breaks into an unbidden smile, big and way too soft, and he can hear the others do the same - so without overthinking, he simply clicks the shutter.

He takes a couple for good measure before chucking the phone (Tooru’s, he realizes, from the Rebel Alliance sticker on the back) off to the side to worry about later. He settles back down, tucking his arm up against his chest and draping the other over Bo so he can link his fingers with Tetsu’s. Tooru’s hand moves up to take his other hand, and Hajime lets out a contented sigh.

His exhaustion is bearing down completely now, and he knows he’s going to be out like a light in a matter of seconds - so he takes another breath, searching for words.

“Tetsu?” he whispers. There’s a hum in response, and pressure against his fingers.

“...thank you for this. It’s… amazing. And thank you for yesterday, too - that curry got me through the night.”

He can hear Tetsu smile. “And then you forgot your lunch, too.”

Hajime groans a little. “I did. That was… tough. Thanks for saving it for me though. Still tasted great.”

“Of course.”

“...and Tooru?”

A nudge of a nose to his nape, and the soft exhale of air.

“Hm?”

“Thank you so much for helping me get the structure down. You saved me there. And for finding the books I needed when I got lost.”

Tooru squeezes him tighter in response, and Hajime knows he’s smiling.

“...and, Kou?”

Another hum, one he feels as he hears it, close and familiar.

“...thanks for keeping me company. And… for trusting me.”

Bo shifts until he can press a kiss to Hajime’s forehead.

“I love you,” he says. “...an’ Tetsu, an’ To.”

Tetsu nods. “I love you too, Iwa. And Bo, and Tooru.”

“Me, too,” Tooru says, voice already heavy with exhaustion, too. “...so much.”

There’s a warmth building, one that Hajime couldn’t even begin to explain or find words for. He shifts, dragging one of the blankets towards him with his feet until he can reach it and drape it around them. They snuggle a little closer, determined to make it fit.

It feels safe. Like something from a dream.

“I love you too,” he says, soft and sincere. “All of you. I love you so, so much.”

The responses come in kisses; to his knuckles, his temple, his neck.

It feels like a moment that’s outside of all their worries, outside exams and deadlines and responsibilities. A moment that stays, even if they’re going to have to get up tomorrow and dive right back in. A moment that’s theirs.

**Author's Note:**

> *whispers* As you can probably tell... there are more stories to tell here. And I will. Don't worry. I've made it my mission to make this tag a little less empty.  
> Shoutout to CJ and Rikka who saved my ass here with their enthusiasm (and also to Mack, who yelled a lot, and to Jasper, who nudged me into this ship?? Bro. Yes. Thank you.)
> 
> Thank you for reading! It'd love it if you left a comment!! (Especially with rare pairs, people, we gotta stick together!)
> 
> Also! Find me on [tumblr](http://frenchibi.tumblr.com) and yell your headcanons at me??


End file.
